>>4
>>I am borderline literate and need to consult a dictionary to make it through his books
China Mieville does tend to beat up on his protagonists too much. While a certain degree of dystopian gloom might be necessary to hammer home the fact that the world is not, by any means, a Nice Place, in some cases what he does is unnecessary and in some cases purely gratuitous. See Lin's treatment at the hands of Motley in PSS.